RELATED ARTICLES

Share this article

Farmer David Fursdon had placed his handset on the floor of a barn to bottle feed another animal when the three-week-old lamb decided to investigate the gadget.

The Greyfaced Dartmoor lamb, which has not yet been named, apparently pressed his nose against the phone's touch screen, taking a picture of himself.

Mr Fursden, who lives near Exeter, Devon, posted the image on Twitter, explaining: 'He managed to borrow the phone to take a selfie.

Musa and a companion peered excitedly into the lens at Washington Wetlands Centre in Tyne and Wear

Owen Humphreys, the photographer whose camera was nabbed, said Musa 'snatched it in both paws'

'He nicked the phone while I was bottle feeding his sister! He's bright!' The 61-year-old added: 'I was just topping them up with the bottle because the ewe is only producing milk from one of her udders.

'I tried to take a photograph of the ewe but she was a bit suspicious of the phone and she didn't like it much.

'But then the lamb's bossy brother came barging in and was really engaged by the phone. He was certainly not camera shy.'

Meanwhile, Musa, an otter at the WWT Washington Wetland Centre in Tyne and Wear, grabbed the kit of professional photographer Owen Humphreys, who explained: 'I had just put the camera down and the otter came up to the bars and snatched it in both paws.

This little Exeter lamb, which has yet to be named, made farmers on Fursdon Estate burst out laughing

He was fumbling around the hay on the ground when he happened upon David Fursdon's phone

'The female otter was in the background and didn't seem too interested in him showing off.

'I burst out laughing when I saw it and knew it would have taken a funny picture.

'The craze for selfies has gone mad.' Dan Baker, grounds and facilities manager at the centre, said: 'They are very playful and inquisitive animals.

'In the wild they tend to live in family units so they are quite happy being in people's company and interact with visitors.

Catriona Fursdon of the Fursdon Estate near Exeter, Devon, was shocked when she noticed the selfie

'Musa loves shiny pebbles and his trick is to lie on his back and do a juggling act with them.' A 'selfie' is the name given to a self-portrait photograph, typically taken using a hand-held digital camera or camera phone, and posted on social networking sites.

The most famous one ever taken was by this year's Oscars host Ellen DeGeneres, and included a group of Hollywood A-listers.

The poses are often casual, taken with the camera held at arm's length or into a mirror, and typically feature only the person- or animal - taking the picture.

A recent survey showed that Britons take around 35million 'selfies' a month.